A standard motor-vehicle door latch has a latching unit comprised of a latching pawl, a release lever, and a pivotal fork or bolt, the latter coacting with a latching block or bolt, as well as an actuating mechanism, a locking mechanism and a coupling mechanism. The actuating mechanism has an outside actuating lever and an inside actuating lever which both are connected to a common actuating lever. The locking mechanism has an inside locking button that is depressed into the door in the locked position, an outside locking lever, and an inside locking lever which is connected to a common inside main locking lever. The coupling mechanism is comprised of a coupling lever or link which in the locked position of the motor-vehicle door latch decouples the inner actuating lever and/or the outer actuating lever. As a result of this decoupling an actuation of the outside or inside door handle does nothing. It is understood that in such a motor-vehicle door latch the latching bolt or block is mounted on the door post or equivalent structure and the other parts of the latch are mounted on the edge of the vehicle door. The term "latching" and "unlatching" are used herein to refer to the acts of, respectively, securing a door closed and freeing a door so it can be opened, and "locking" and "unlocking" are used to refer to the act of making unlatching of the door respectively impossible and possible.
In the prior art such motor-vehicle door latches, on which the instant invention is an improvement, the inner locking knob is pushed down in the locked position. The motor-vehicle door can be unlatched from the inside when the inner actuating lever of the locked motor-vehicle door latch is operated. Thus, the motor-vehicle door can be opened when the inner actuating lever of the door is operated. Thus the motor-vehicle door can be unlocked from the inside without specifically unlocking it. This is not without disadvantages. An inadvertent actuation of the inner actuating lever and the associated structure can lead to opening of the motor-vehicle door which can create a dangerous situation when the vehicle is moving. It is also a problem when the vehicle is moving that an inadvertently locked door cannot simply be unlocked because the door will then simultaneously open. In addition, it is known to provide the above-described motor-vehicle door latch with a mechanism which can be operated from inside the vehicle so as to unlock the door. This is expensive.
Motor-vehicle door latches ar also known constructed such that the inner locking knob is not pushed down to lock the door, but is shaped like a mushroom and is lifted when the door is unlocked. Such an arrangement creates a particularly easy target of theft, in particular with convertible-style windows on the vehicle.